Managing Caregiver Messages

Caregivers, such as doctors, nurses, trained medical professions, and the like are typically assigned to multiple patients during a shift in a care facility such as a hospital. Various alerts or calls from patients and other caregivers are communicated to the caregivers who must prioritize and manage the incoming alerts. Other staff members such as those in housekeeping, food service, and patient transporting must also respond to various alerts and calls.

Sometimes caregivers and staff are provided with wireless communication devices, such as pagers or mobile phones, to receive incoming calls and alerts related to the care of one or more patients. At the end of their shift, the caregivers and staff must return these devices such as for recharging or for use by other caregivers and staff on subsequent shifts. More recently, it is common for caregivers and staff to bring their own mobile phones to work to communicate with each other during a shift for purposes of coordinating patient care.

In general terms, the present disclosure relates to improving communications between caregivers in a healthcare facility. In one possible configuration, a system provides a technical effect by preventing the loss of information, comments, and details that are not typically entered into a patient's medical record, maintaining a history of caregiver communications across caregiver shifts, and allowing caregivers to tag other caregivers in messages sent to a chat room to ensure that the messages are seen while also reducing alert fatigue. Various aspects are described in this disclosure, which include, but are not limited to, the following aspects.

One aspect relates to a system for providing communications on mobile devices located in a healthcare facility. The system comprises: a computing device having at least one processor, and a memory storing instructions which, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the system to: receive a notification identifying a patient admitted to the healthcare facility; create a patient-centric chat room based on the notification; add caregivers to the patient-centric chat room, each of the caregivers added to the patient-centric chat room having a role that provides patient viewing privileges and being assigned to the patient or to the patient's location in the healthcare facility; provide messaging communications in the patient-centric chat room for the caregivers to communicate with each other; and terminate the patient-centric chat room after the patient is discharged from the healthcare facility.

Another aspect relates to a method for providing communications between caregivers located in a healthcare facility. The method comprises: receiving a notification identifying a patient admitted to the healthcare facility; creating a patient-centric chat room based on the notification; adding caregivers to the patient-centric chat room, each of the caregivers having a role providing patient viewing privileges, and being assigned to the patient or to the patient's location; and providing messaging communications in the patient-centric chat room for the caregivers to communicate with each other in the chat room.

Another aspect relates to a non-transitory computer readable storage media including computer readable instructions which, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to: create a chat room for a department, unit, or team within a healthcare facility; add caregivers to the chat room that are assigned to the department, unit, or team; provide messaging communications in the chat room for the caregivers to communicate with each other; monitor a status of the caregivers to remove caregivers from the chat room who have ended their shift, and add new caregivers to the chat room who have started their shift, and that are assigned to the department, unit, or team; and store the messaging communications from the chat room to a memory.

1 FIG. 2 FIG. 50 50 52 200 is a schematic diagram of a caregiver communications systemin a healthcare facility such as a hospital, clinic, nursing home, and the like. The caregiver communications systemincludes a number of mobile devicesthat operate a mobile caregiver application(shown in) for managing messages between caregivers in the healthcare facility, and calls and alerts originating from assigned patients and various hospital equipment associated with the assigned patients in the healthcare facility.

50 50 The caregiver communications systemcan be part of a hospital information system (HIS), which focuses on the administrational needs of the healthcare facility. As an illustrative example, the HIS is a comprehensive, integrated information system for managing all the aspects of the healthcare facility's operation, such as medical, administrative, financial, and legal issues and the corresponding processing of services. In certain aspects, the caregiver communications systemcan share similar aspects with the system described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/143,971, titled CAREGIVER AND STAFF INFORMATION SYSTEM, filed on Sep. 27, 2018, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

200 52 62 64 54 52 200 86 50 The mobile caregiver applicationallows caregivers and staff to use their mobile devicesto conduct voice, video, and text messaging between themselves, monitor alerts and calls from assigned patients, and permit voice communications to audio stations,mounted in patient rooms adjacent to respective patient beds. In some examples, the mobile devicesare smartphones, tablet computers, or similar devices. The mobile caregiver applicationcan act as a secondary notification system that supplements a nurse call serverof the caregiver communications systemthat will be described in more detail below.

54 56 58 60 61 62 64 63 60 54 62 64 66 54 62 64 66 1 FIG. The calls and alerts from assigned patients and various hospital equipment may originate from the patient beds, patient tablets, call switches, and pillow speaker units. Alerts may also originate from a smoke alarm. In some examples, the audio stations,can include a code blue call leverwhich can be pulled by a caregiver in an emergency such as when a patient is having a medical emergency such as a heart attack. In the example of, the pillow speaker unitsof the patient bedsare coupled to the audio stations,by audio station bed connectors (ASBCs). Alternatively, one or more network interface units (NIUs) or wireless interface units (WIUs) can provide the connectivity between the patient bedsand respective audio stations,instead of the ASBCs.

58 61 62 64 68 68 54 60 61 62 64 68 The call switches, smoke alarm, and audio stations,are each communicatively coupled to a respective input/output (I/O) circuit board. Each circuit boardincludes a processor, such as a microprocessor, microcontroller, and the like that receives various alerts and calls, sometimes referred to herein as “alert messages,” from the patient beds, pillow speaker units, smoke alarms, and audio stations,. The processor of each circuit boarddetermines an alert message priority designation for each of the incoming alert messages. For example, alert messages can be designated as normal alert messages or high priority alert messages. Additional types of message priority designations may also be used.

68 70 70 68 70 68 70 68 70 68 68 Each circuit boardis coupled to a respective dome lightwhich can include multiple lights that are illuminated to indicate a room status. The illumination of the dome lightis controlled by the circuit boardbased on alert conditions occurring in the respective patient room and based on caregiver presence in, or absence from, the patient room. Dome lightsare mounted outside each patient room, typically near a doorway to the respective room. In some examples, circuit boardare installed in a housing to which the dome lightsare mounted. Thus, the circuit boardcan be located outside the patient rooms adjacent the dome lights. Alternatively, the circuit boardcan be located inside the patient rooms. In either case, the circuit boardare considered to be “at” the patient room according to this disclosure.

72 74 68 74 50 72 74 72 68 70 72 74 72 74 A locating badgeis shown in wireless communication with a remote locator receiver (RLR)which, in turn, is communicatively coupled with the circuit boardin the respective patient room in which the RLRis located. The caregiver communications systemcan include multiple locating badgeseach worn by a respective caregiver, and multiple RLRs located throughout the healthcare facility. In response to an RLRdetecting one or more locating badgesin any particular room, a signal or message is communicated to the respective circuit boardand the lighting of the dome lightis updated accordingly to indicate the presence of a caregiver in the patient room. In certain examples, the locating badgestransmit infrared (IR) signals to RLRs. Alternative examples are also possible in which radio frequency (RF) transmissions, including ultra-wideband (UWB) transmissions, are made by the locating badgesto the RLRsthat are in the patent rooms.

1 FIG. 1 FIG. 68 76 78 80 82 76 84 86 90 52 84 52 94 96 98 90 Still referring to, each circuit boardis communicatively coupled to a Power over Ethernet (PoE) switchwhich is, in turn, communicatively coupled to a primary staff console(sometimes referred to as a “master nurse station”), a secondary staff console, and a staff terminal. PoE switchis communicatively coupled to a voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) Switch and Enterprise serverwhich is, in turn, coupled to a nurse call servervia Ethernet infrastructure, illustrated diagrammatically as networkin. Also, the mobile devicesare communicatively coupled to the VoIP Switch and Enterprise server, which can provide access on the mobile devicesto an electronic medical records (EMR) server, an admission, discharge, transfer (ADT) server, and additional serversvia the network.

90 The networkcan include any type of wired or wireless connections or any combinations thereof. Examples of wired connections include fiber optic, ethernet, and other wired computer networking technologies. Examples of wireless connections include broadband cellular networks such as 4G and 5G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and the like.

58 60 62 64 66 68 70 76 78 80 82 84 86 50 The call switches, pillow speaker units, audio stations,, ASBC's, circuit board, dome light, PoE switch, primary staff console, secondary staff console, staff terminal, VoIP Switch and Enterprise server, and nurse call serverare illustrative of a diagrammatic nurse call system portion of the caregiver communications systemand that nurse call system architecture will vary from one healthcare facility to the next.

56 50 56 56 88 92 92 86 90 The patient tabletscan also be included as part of the nurse call system portion of the caregiver communications system. The patient tabletsare used by patients to send requests such as requests for pain medication, requests for bathroom assistance, food requests, drink requests, ice chips requests, requests for assistance with personal care, and the like. In the illustrative example, the patient tabletscommunicate wirelessly with wireless access points (WAP)which, in turn, communicate with a patient tablet communications server. The patient tablet communications servercommunicates the patient requests, which are also considered to be alert messages, to the nurse call servervia the network.

54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 54 The alert messages originating from the patient bedscan include alert messages relating to a bed exit of the patient from a patient bed, patient position on a patient bedexceeding a threshold, patient movement on a patient bedexceeding a threshold or falling below a threshold, siderail position (e.g., siderail down) of a patient bed, casters of a patient bednot being braked, angle of a head section of a patient bedbeing below a threshold angle (e.g., 30 degrees), an upper frame of a patient bednot being in its lowest position relative to a base frame of the patient bed, a bed component of a patient bedexceeding a threshold temperature, a mattress bladder of a patient bedfalling below a threshold pressure, a pneumatic system error or failure of a patient bed, an actuator error or failure of a patient bed, an overcurrent condition of a component of a patient bed, a power system error or failure of a patient bed, and power disconnection from a patient bed.

1 FIG. 50 94 96 94 96 As shown in, the caregiver communications systemincludes the electronic medical records (EMR) serverand the admission, discharge, transfer (ADT) server. The EMR serverand the ADT servercan be part of the HIS.

94 50 90 The EMR serverstores electronic medical/health records for each patient admitted to the healthcare facility. These records can be shared across the HIS, and other information networks and exchanges, including the various components of the caregiver communications system. For example, these records can be shared through the network. The electronic medical/health records include a range of data, such as medical history, medication and allergies, immunization status, laboratory test results, radiology images, vital signs, and personal statistics like age and weight, and billing information for each patient admitted to the healthcare facility.

96 50 96 96 50 The ADT serveris used by the caregiver communications systemto track the location and status of patients from their arrival until their departure from the healthcare facility including events such as when a patient is transferred to a new department, unit, or room within the healthcare facility. The ADT serverstores information for each patient admitted to the healthcare facility such as the patient's medical record number, name, age, sex, contact information, date of admission, reason for admission, and the like. The patient information within the ADT servercan be shared with other components of the caregiver communications systemincluding the hospital information system, as will be described in more detail.

50 98 86 94 96 98 52 84 90 The caregiver communications systemmay also include additional servers. The nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, and additional serversare accessible on the mobile devicesvia the VoIP Switch and Enterprise serverand network.

98 74 72 74 50 86 90 In certain examples, the additional serverscan include, for example, a real time locating system (RTLS) server that is communicatively coupled to RLRs. In such examples, the locating badges, RLRs, and RTLS server form a real time locating system portion of the caregiver communications system. Staff locating information can be communicated from the RTLS server to the nurse call servervia the network.

98 52 52 54 60 56 52 In some examples, the additional serverscan include a server that manages the routing of alert messages and related staff information to the mobile device. In general, alert messages relating to particular patients or particular rooms assigned to particular caregivers are sent to the mobile deviceof that particular caregiver. The alert messages may originate from the patient beds, pillow speaker units, and patient tablets. Additionally, it is also possible that alert messages originating from other types of equipment may be communicated to the mobile devicesof assigned caregivers as well.

200 52 200 52 200 2 25 FIGS.- 2 25 FIGS.- The features and functions of the mobile caregiver applicationare described below in more detail with reference tothat include various screen shots that can appear on the mobile devices. By seeing the functionality represented in each of the screen shots and by considering the following description of the screen shots of, those skilled in the art will be enabled to make and use the mobile caregiver application, and its variant embodiments, contemplated herein. It should be appreciated that the screen shots of this disclosure are exemplary in nature and are provided to give a general sense of the type of information that may appear on a display screen of any given mobile deviceduring use of the mobile caregiver applicationby the caregivers. Thus, the screen shots are merely individual examples from a practically unlimited number of possibilities. That is, the information such as alert messages, staff names, staff locations, room name formats, unit names, and the like may vary from healthcare facility to healthcare facility and may vary in any given healthcare facility throughout any given day in response to the various incoming alert messages, for example.

2 FIG. 200 200 52 200 90 86 94 96 98 schematically illustrates the mobile caregiver application. The mobile caregiver applicationis operated on the mobile devicesof the caregivers. The mobile caregiver applicationcan also be operated on one or more servers connected to the networksuch as the nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, and additional servers.

200 52 99 200 52 200 200 52 1 FIG. The mobile caregiver applicationis available for downloading on the mobile devicefrom an App Store(see) accessible via the Internet. Alternatively, the mobile caregiver applicationcan also be downloaded on the mobile devicesby connecting the mobile devices to a data storage device that has the mobile caregiver applicationstored thereon. In some examples, the mobile caregiver applicationis downloaded onto the mobile devicesunder the supervision and authorization of an administrator.

2 FIG. 2 FIG. 200 202 204 206 208 200 202 208 As shown in the example depicted in, the mobile caregiver applicationincludes a software moduleto automatically create and terminate chat rooms, a software moduleto dynamically add and remove caregivers to the chat rooms, a software moduleto enforce tagging in messages sent in the chat rooms, and a software moduleto enable searching and inviting other caregivers to the chat rooms. The mobile caregiver applicationmay include fewer or additional software modules as desirable such that the software modules-shown inare provided for illustrative purposes only.

200 200 In certain embodiments, the mobile caregiver applicationis used to create and manage patient-centric chat rooms that are centralized around a patient admitted to the healthcare facility. Additionally, the mobile caregiver applicationis used to create and manage shift-centric chat rooms such as for departments, units, and teams within a healthcare facility.

3 FIG. 300 52 300 illustrates an example of a methodof managing messages between caregivers on the mobile devices. The methodis directed to creating and managing patient-centric chat rooms which, as described above, are centralized around a patient.

300 200 50 The methodis performed by the mobile caregiver application, and utilizes the infrastructure of the caregiver communications systemto enable caregivers to quickly communicate with one another. The patient-centric chat rooms allow caregivers assigned to a patient to communicate with one another at any given time. Unlike normal group messages, the patient-centric chat rooms are dynamically updated based on the assignment of the caregivers to the patient. Advantageously, the patient-centric chat room can prevent the loss of information, comments, and details that are not typically entered into a patient's medical record.

300 302 304 306 308 The methodincludes an operationof creating a chat room, an operationof dynamically adding and removing caregivers to the chat room, an operationof managing messages in the chat room, and an operationof terminating the chat room.

4 FIG. 302 202 200 52 illustrates operationin more detail which is performed by the software moduleof the mobile caregiver applicationto create a patient-centric chat room for a patient that is newly admitted to the healthcare facility. The patient-centric chat room is automatically created without requiring any input or action from the caregivers. Advantageously, the caregivers can begin to receive messages on their mobile devicefrom the patient-centric chat room for the given patient once the patient is admitted to the healthcare facility.

4 FIG. 302 402 200 96 90 Referring now to, operationincludes a stepof receiving a notification identifying a patient admitted to the healthcare facility. The notification can be received by the mobile caregiver applicationfrom the ADT serversuch as through the network. The notification can be received at the time the patient is admitted to the healthcare facility.

96 The notification can include at least the patient's name, and room number or department or unit within the healthcare facility. Additionally, the notification can include additional information acquired from the ADT serverincluding the patient's medical record number, age, sex, date of admission, reason for admission, and the like.

302 404 404 302 406 Next, operationincludes a stepof determining whether a patient-centric chat room for the patient already exists. When it is determined that a patient-centric chat room for the patient does not already exist (i.e., “No” at step), operationproceeds to a stepof creating the patient-centric chat room for the newly admitted patient.

404 302 404 302 408 96 408 302 When it is determined that a patient-centric chat room for the patient already exists (i.e., “Yes” at step), operationends. Alternatively, when it is determined that a patient-centric chat room for the patient already exists (i.e., “Yes” at step), operationcan proceed to a stepof determining based on the notification received from the ADT serverwhether the patient's status or location has changed. When it is determined that the patient's status or location has not changed (i.e., “No” at step), operationends.

408 302 410 96 When it is determined that the patient's status or location has changed (i.e., “Yes at step), operationproceeds to a stepof updating the patient-centric chat room based on the changed status or location of the patient as determined from the notification received from the ADT server. For example, the patient-centric chat room can be updated when the patient is transferred to a new room or department or unit within the healthcare facility.

5 FIG. 5 FIG. 304 204 200 204 52 86 94 96 98 90 84 304 502 94 96 98 illustrates operationin more detail which is performed by the software moduleof the mobile caregiver applicationto dynamically add and remove caregivers to the patient-centric chat room. The software moduledynamically updates the patient-centric chat rooms on the mobile deviceby communicating with the nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, and/or additional serversvia the networkand VoIP Switch and Enterprise server. Referring now to, operationincludes a stepof receiving patient information such as the patient's name or ID number, and the patient's room number or unit within the healthcare facility. The patient information can be acquired from the EMR server, ADT server, and additional servers, and is monitored and continuously updated.

304 504 200 50 90 86 78 80 82 98 Next, operationincludes a stepof receiving caregiver information. The caregiver information can be received by the mobile caregiver applicationfrom the caregiver communications systemvia the network. For example, the caregiver information can be received from any one of the nurse call server, the primary and secondary staff consoles,, the staff terminal, or the additional servers.

86 78 80 82 98 The caregiver information identifies caregivers based on (1) their assignment to patients, or (2) their assignment to one or more rooms or departments or units within the healthcare facility. The caregiver information also identifies the status of caregivers such as whether they are on shift or off shift. The caregiver information is monitored and continuously updated by the nurse call server, the primary and secondary staff consoles,, the staff terminal, or the additional servers.

304 506 506 304 508 508 508 Next, operationincludes a stepof determining whether a caregiver is assigned to the patient. A caregiver is assigned to the patient when the caregiver has a role that provides patient viewing privileges and at least one of the following assignments: (1) EMR assignment to the patient; (2) manual assignment to the patient; and (3) room-based or unit-based assignment to the patient. When it is determined that a caregiver is assigned to the patient (i.e., “Yes” at step), operationproceeds to a stepof adding the caregiver to the patient-centric chat room. In some instances, when the caregiver is already a member of a patient-centric chat room for a given patient, stepcan include confirming and/or maintaining the caregiver's membership to the patient-centric chat room. Additionally, stepensures that only caregivers with patient viewing privileges are added to the patient-centric chat room which helps to maintain the privacy of the information communicated in the chat room, and compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

506 304 510 510 502 510 When it is determined that a caregiver is not assigned to the patient (i.e., “No” at step), operationdoes not add the caregiver to the patient-centric chat room at step. When the caregiver is a member of a patient-centric chat room for a given patient, stepcan include removing the caregiver from the patient-centric chat room. Steps-can be repeated such that the membership of the caregivers to the patient-centric chat room is continuously updated while the patient remains admitted in the healthcare facility.

In view of the foregoing, a caregiver is added to a patient-centric chat room based on (1) their assignment directly to a patient, or (2) their assignment to a location associated with the patient such as the patient's room or unit within the healthcare facility.

204 Unlike typical group messaging, the assignment of caregivers to the patient-centric chat rooms is dynamically updated based on the location and status of a patient within the healthcare facility. For example, when the patient is transferred to a new room, the patient-centric chat room for the patient is dynamically updated by the software moduleto add caregivers based on the new room of the patient, and to remove caregivers that were assigned to the patient-centric chat room based on the patient's previous room. Thus, a caregiver can lose their membership to a patient-centric chat room when the caregiver loses their assignment to the patient or their patient viewing privileges, or the patient is transferred to another room where the caregiver is not assigned, or when the patient is discharged from the healthcare facility.

52 When a caregiver loses patient viewing privileges, all of the patient related information, including the patient-centric chat room, will no longer be accessible on the mobile deviceof the caregiver. In some example, the patient-centric chat room displays a banner to notify the caregiver that they no longer have access to the chat room because the patient has been transferred to another room or has been discharged from the healthcare facility.

94 The removal of a caregiver from a patient-centric chat room is based on how the caregiver was added to the chat room. As an illustrative example, a caregiver can remain a member of the patient-centric chat room when the caregiver was added to the patient-centric chat room based on an EMR assignment to the patient, even though the patient has been transferred to another room. However, when a message from the EMR serverindicates that the caregiver is no longer assigned to the patient, the caregiver is removed from the patient-centric chat room.

96 In examples where a caregiver is added to a patient-centric chat room based on a manual assignment to the patient, the caregiver is removed from the patient-centric chat room when the caregiver is manually unassigned from the patient. In examples where a caregiver is added to a patient-centric chat room based their assignment to the patient's room, the caregiver is removed from the patient-centric chat room when a message from the ADT serverindicates that the patient has been moved to a different room where the caregiver is not assigned, or where the caregiver does not have patient viewing privileges.

52 52 Membership to the patient-centric chat room is also dynamically updated based on the caregiver's status. For example, when a caregiver ends their shift, the patient-centric chat room can be dynamically updated to remove the caregiver such that the caregiver no longer receives messages on their mobile devicefrom the patient-centric chat room. When the caregiver starts their shift and they are assigned to a patient or patient room, a patient-centric chat room associated with the patient or patient room number is dynamically updated to add the caregiver as a member so that the caregiver can immediately begin to receive messages on their mobile devicefrom the patient-centric chat room. The caregiver can be added to the patient-centric chat room without requiring any input or action from the caregiver.

3 FIG. 306 306 206 208 200 Referring now to, operationof managing messages in the chat room includes providing features to enhance communication between caregivers in the patient-centric chat room. These features can include providing the ability for a caregiver to tag another caregiver in a message to ensure that the message is seen by an intended caregiver. Also, the features include enabling a caregiver to search and invite one or more additional caregivers to the patient-centric chat room that are not assigned to the patient or the patient's location. These features will be described in more detail below. Similar features can also be provided in the shift-centric chat rooms that are described in more detail below. Operationis performed by the software modules,of the mobile caregiver application.

6 FIG. 6 FIG. 308 300 308 202 200 308 602 200 96 90 illustrates operationof the methodin more detail. Operationis performed by the software moduleof the mobile caregiver applicationto terminate the patient-centric chat room after the patient is discharged from the healthcare facility. Referring now to, operationincludes a stepof receiving a notification that the patient has been discharged from the healthcare facility. The notification can be received by the mobile caregiver applicationfrom the ADT serversuch as through the network.

308 604 After receiving the notification that the patient has been discharged, operationproceeds to stepof terminating the patient-centric chat room. Thus, the patient-centric chat room persists until the patient is discharged from the healthcare facility. In some examples, the patient-centric chat room is automatically terminated without requiring any input or action from the caregivers. Accordingly, the caregivers cease to receive messages from the patient-centric chat room on their mobile device after the patient is discharged from the healthcare facility. In certain examples, the patient-centric chat room displays a banner notifying the caregivers that the patient has been discharged and they no longer have access to the patient's chat room. At least one technical advantage of automatically terminating the patient-centric chat room is the reduction of storage requirements on the mobile devices of the caregivers.

308 606 In some examples, operationincludes a stepof storing the messages sent in the patient-centric chat room to a file that can be later accessed and reviewed after the patient's discharge. Advantageously, the messages sent in the patient-centric chat room can be reviewed for compliance with healthcare protocols and/or parsed for information that is typically not recorded in the patient's medical record to improve patient care.

94 200 84 90 52 94 94 1 FIG. In certain examples, the messages sent in the patient-centric chat room are stored in the EMR server. For example, the mobile caregiver applicationcan utilize VoIP Switch and Enterprise serverand network(shown in) to communicatively couple the mobile devicesto the EMR serversuch that the messages sent in the patient-centric chat room are saved to the patient's medical record in the EMR server.

7 FIG. 700 52 700 700 200 50 700 illustrates an example of a methodof managing messages between caregivers on the mobile devices. The methodis directed to creating and managing shift-centric chat rooms. The methodis performed by the mobile caregiver application, and utilizes the infrastructure of the caregiver communications systemto enable caregivers to quickly communicate with one another in shift-centric chat rooms. Advantageously, the methodcan help maintain a history of caregiver communications across caregiver shifts.

7 FIG. 700 702 704 706 708 300 700 Referring now to, the methodincludes an operationof automatically creating a chat room, an operationof assigning caregivers to the chat room, and an operationof enabling messaging in the chat room, and an operationof storing the messages sent in the shift-centric chat room. Unlike the methoddescribed above, the methoddoes not terminate the chat room because the shift-centric chat rooms persist indefinitely since they are based on a department, unit, or team within the healthcare facility.

702 702 202 200 Operationincludes creating a chat room for a department, unit, or team within the healthcare facility such as, without limitation, an emergency department, an intensive care unit, a trauma center, a neonatal intensive care unit, a surgical unit, a burn unit, rapid response teams, a cardiology department, and the like. Operationcan be performed by the software moduleof the mobile caregiver applicationto create the shift-centric chat room.

704 86 78 80 82 704 50 Operationcan include receiving information from one or more of the nurse call server, the primary and secondary staff consoles,, and the staff terminalto determine which caregivers are assigned to the designated department, unit, or team of the shift-centric chat room. Based on this information, the caregivers are added to the chat room at operation. Also, caregivers can be dynamically added to shift-centric chat rooms when they assign themselves to a department, team, or unit in the caregiver communications system.

704 86 78 80 82 Additionally, operationcan also include determining whether the caregivers assigned to the designated department, unit, or team are on shift or off shift. This information is monitored and continuously updated based on the data received from the nurse call serverand/or the primary and secondary staff consoles,, and/or the staff terminal. Thus, the caregivers are added to one or more shift-centric chat rooms when they begin their shift and the caregivers are removed from the shift-centric chat rooms when they end their shift.

52 52 Advantageously, messages from shift-centric chat rooms can be blocked on the mobile devicesof the caregivers when the caregivers are off shift, such as when they are at home off from work. Also, the caregivers when on shift can automatically receive messages from the shift-centric chat rooms on their mobile deviceswithout requiring any input or action from the caregivers. In some examples, caregivers are removed from a shift-centric chat room when they manually remove themselves from a unit or team by editing their shift. Also, caregivers can be removed from shift-centric chat rooms when an assignment bump removes them from an exclusive role that causes the caregiver to no longer be part of a unit or team.

706 306 706 206 208 200 9 25 FIGS.- Operationof enabling messaging in the chat room includes providing features to enhance communication between caregivers in the shift-centric chat room. These features are similar to the features described above with respect to operationof the patient-centric chat rooms, and will be described in more detail below with reference to. Operationis performed by the software modules,of the mobile caregiver application.

708 Operationincludes storing the messages sent in the shift-centric chat room to a memory that can be later accessed and reviewed. Advantageously, the messages sent in the shift-centric chat room can be reviewed for compliance with healthcare protocols and/or parsed for information that is typically not recorded in medical records to improve patient care.

86 94 96 98 200 84 90 52 86 94 96 98 86 94 96 98 1 FIG. In certain examples, the messages sent in the patient-centric chat room are stored in at least one of the nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, or additional servers. For example, the mobile caregiver applicationcan utilize VoIP Switch and Enterprise serverand network(shown in) to communicatively couple the mobile devicesto the nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, or additional serverssuch that the messages sent in the shift-centric chat rooms can be sent to the nurse call server, EMR server, ADT server, or additional serversfor storage. In certain examples, the messages from the shift-centric chat rooms are destroyed after a predetermined amount of time has elapsed.

8 FIG. 8 FIG. 800 200 52 800 802 800 802 802 shows an example of a chat rooms tabdisplayed by the mobile caregiver applicationon a mobile deviceof a caregiver. Once a caregiver is assigned to a patient-centric chat room or shift-centric chat room, the chat rooms are accessible by the caregiver from the chat rooms tab. As shown in, a plurality of chat roomsto which the caregiver is assigned are displayed in a single list on the chat rooms tab. In certain examples, the plurality of chat roomscan be sorted by ordering the chat roomsbased on which ones have most recently received a message, relevancy, or some other metric.

8 FIG. 800 802 802 802 800 a b c As shown in, different types of chat rooms are displayed in the single list on the chat rooms tab. For example, chat roomsare patient-centric chat rooms, while chat roomis a shift-centric chat room for a code blue team within the healthcare facility, and chat roomis a shift-centric chat room for a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) within the healthcare facility. Additional types of chat rooms can be included on the chat rooms tab.

800 804 802 804 802 804 802 804 802 a a b b c c The chat rooms tabidentifies the different types of chat rooms by providing symbolsnext to each chat room. For example, a first type of symbolcan be used to identify the chat roomsthat are patient centric, a second type of symbolcan be used to identify the chat roomsthat are shift-centric and dedicated to a team within the healthcare facility, and a third type of symbolcan be used to identify the chat roomsthat are shift-centric and dedicated to a unit or department within the healthcare facility.

802 800 806 808 800 802 802 a b c. For each chat roomthat is patient-centric, the chat rooms tabidentifies the patent's name, and the patient's room number. The chat rooms tabcan also display the name of the team, unit, or department for the shift-centric chat rooms,

800 810 802 810 800 812 802 800 814 802 a The chat rooms tabcan provide symbolsthat identify unread messages within each chat room. In some examples, the symbolsidentify a quantity of unread messages. Additionally, the chat rooms tabmay also provide a time stampthat identifies the last time a message was received in a particular chat room. Also, the chat rooms tabmay also provide at least a portionof the last message received in each chat room.

800 78 80 82 52 94 1 FIG. In addition to the chat rooms tab, a patient-centric chat room can also be accessed by a caregiver from a patient record that includes a chat tab to show the recorded contents of the patient-centric chat room. The patient record and chat tab can be displayed on the primary or secondary staff consoles,, the staff terminal, or on the mobile devices. In certain examples, the patient record is an electronic medical record (EMR) or electronic health record (EHR) that is stored on the EMR servershown in.

9 FIG. 9 FIG. 900 52 900 is an illustrative example of a chat roomthat can be displayed on a display screen of a mobile deviceof a caregiver. Whileshows a patient-centric chat room, a shift-centric chat room may include many similar features as the chat roomsuch that the following description may apply to patient-centric and shift-centric chat rooms, alike.

9 FIG. 9 FIG. 900 902 904 906 902 902 902 302 902 Referring now to, the chat roomincludes a label area, a message area, and an input area. The label areaidentifies the patient that is the subject of a patient-centric chat room, or the department, unit, or team that is the subject of a shift-centric chat room. In the illustrative example of, the label areaidentifies a patient as “Roberts, Laura”. In patient-centric chat rooms, the label areamay provide additional patient details such as the department or unit within the healthcare facility where the patient is admitted (e.g., a Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU)), the patient's room number (e.g., “”), the patient's ID number (e.g., “1746254”), and the patient's sex (e.g., “F” for female, or “M” for male). Additional or fewer details may be included in the label area.

904 900 930 932 902 904 934 900 The message areadisplays messages that are sent in the chat roomwhen a chat tabis selected. When a patient tabis selected, additional patient information and details (in addition to those displayed in the label area) can be displayed in the message area. Additionally, when a team tabis selected, a list of caregivers and staff that are assigned to the chat roomcan be displayed in another user interface.

9 FIG. 910 910 900 a b In the illustrative example of, a first messagereads “@ Lori Larson Can we order the patient some pain meds?” and a second messagereads “@ Lisa Jenkins placed an order for pain medicine”. As will be described in more detail, the at symbol @ can be used by a caregiver to tag another caregiver assigned to the chat roomin a message that is sent to the chat room. Tagging another caregiver can help to ensure that the message is seen by the intended caregiver by alerting them that the message is directed to them.

52 In certain examples, only the tagged caregivers receive an alert on their mobile devicethat notifies them that they have been tagged in a message that has been sent to the chat room, while the other caregivers in the chat room that have not been tagged do not receive the alert. This can reduce alert fatigue which occurs when the caregivers are exposed to a large number of frequent alerts that causes them to consequently become desensitized to the alerts.

52 904 900 904 In certain examples, the display screen of a mobile devicecan be a touchscreen such that a caregiver can scroll the message areawith their finger to read earlier messages that were sent in the chat room. In other examples, a caregiver can scroll the message areawith an input device such as a mouse to read earlier messages.

9 FIG. 906 912 914 916 900 900 912 916 In the illustrative example of, the input areaincludes a keyboardthat a caregiver can use to type a text message inside a text entry field, and a send symbolto send the message when completed to the other caregivers assigned to the chat room. In this illustrative example, the chat roomis displayed on a touchscreen device such that the keyboardand send symbolcan be selected with the caregiver's fingers. In addition to typed messages, the caregiver can also insert a photo or image into the message.

912 925 914 914 926 918 920 14 20 FIGS.- The keyboardincludes the at symbol @that is used to tag another caregiver in the text entry field. Additionally, the text entry fieldcan include a shortcutcan be used to select the at symbol @ to tag another caregiver. Tagging another caregiver in a message will be described in more detail below with reference to. After a caregiveris selected for tagging, the message can be typed following the text cursor.

900 922 900 900 900 900 In certain examples, the chat roomcan include a call symbolthat can be selected by a caregiver to call another caregiver assigned to the chat room. In certain examples, the chat roomcan allow the caregiver to directly message another caregiver assigned to the chat roominstead of sending a message to the chat room. Calling or directly messaging another caregiver can be used when an immediate response is needed.

900 924 900 924 800 900 800 900 94 924 Additionally, the chat roomincludes a return symbolthat can be selected by a caregiver to exit the chat room. In some examples, the return symbolwhen selected returns the caregiver back to the chat rooms tabwhen the chat roomis accessed from the chat rooms tab. Alternatively, when the chat roomis accessed from a patient record such as an electronic medical record (EMR) stored on the EMR server, the return symbolwhen selected returns the caregiver back to the patient record.

10 FIG. 1000 1000 1002 1004 1006 illustrates a hierarchy of tagging protocolsfor managing messages between caregivers in patient-centric and shift-centric chat rooms. As described above, tagging is identifying or targeting another caregiver in a message to alert them that the message is directed to them. Tagging another caregiver in a message will alert the tagged caregiver that a message pertains to them and is a way to ensure that the message is acknowledged by the intended caregiver. The levels of tagging protocolsinclude a first level of tagging, a second level of tagging, and a third level of tagging. While three levels of tagging protocols are shown and described herein, the number of tagging protocols may vary as desired.

200 The mobile caregiver applicationcan allow an administrator to select a tagging protocol for the messaging in the patient-centric and shift-centric chat rooms. In certain examples, the administrator can select one level of tagging protocol for the patient-centric chat rooms, and can select a different level of tagging protocol for the shift-centric chat rooms.

Additionally, the administrator can select a tagging protocol for each patient-centric chat room based on the severity of the patient's condition. For example, the administrator can select a lower-level tagging protocol (e.g., first or second level) for patient-centric chat rooms for patients in good condition, and a higher-level tagging protocol (e.g., third level) for patient-centric chat rooms for patients who have a deteriorated condition.

1002 52 1002 The first level of taggingdoes not require a caregiver to tag another caregiver in order for the caregiver to send a message to the chat room. Thus, a caregiver can simply type and send a message using their mobile device, and the message will be sent to the chat room regardless of whether another caregiver has been tagged in the message. The first level of taggingdoes not prevent a caregiver from tagging another caregiver in a message.

11 FIG. 11 FIG. 1100 52 1002 1100 1102 1104 is another illustrative example of a chat roomthat can be displayed on a display screen of a mobile deviceof a caregiver. In the example shown in, the first level of taggingis supported by the chat roomsince at least some messagestag another caregiver, while other messagesdo not tag another caregiver.

1004 916 The second level of taggingdisplays a notification or warning when a caregiver selects the send symbolto send a message to the chat room without tagging another caregiver, however, the notification can be ignored such that the second level of tagging allows the message to be sent to the chat room without tagging another caregiver.

23 FIG. 23 FIG. 2300 1004 2300 2300 shows an example of a notificationthat can be generated when another caregiver is not tagged in message according to the second level of tagging. As shown in, the notificationcan include a message that reminds the caregiver to tag another caregiver before the message is sent to the chat room. For example, the notificationcan state that “You haven't tagged anyone” and can include further details such as “Sending a message without tagging may cause it to go unnoticed by the user. Tag a user to notify them.”

1004 2300 2302 2300 2304 Under the second level of tagging, the notificationprovide a send inputwhich can be selected to send the message without tagging another caregiver. The notificationcan also provide a cancel inputthat when selected returns the caregiver back to the text entry field so that they can tag another caregiver in the message.

1006 1006 916 The third level of taggingenforces tagging by blocking the caregiver from sending a message to the chat room unless another caregiver is tagged. Under the third level of tagging, a notification is generated after the caregiver selects the send symbolto send the message to the chat room without tagging another caregiver. The notification can include a message to remind the caregiver of the need to tag another caregiver such as “Sending a message without tagging may cause it to go unnoticed by the user. Tag a user to notify them.”

1004 1006 912 Unlike the second level of tagging, the caregiver cannot choose to ignore the notification under the third level of tagging. Instead, the caregiver is blocked from sending the message unless they tag another caregiver. Thus, the caregiver must acknowledge the alert, and thereafter revise the message using the keyboardto tag another caregiver.

1000 200 In addition to making the chat rooms configurable to follow a level of tagging from the hierarchy of tagging protocols, the patient-centric and shift-centric chat rooms can also be equipped with a coaching tool that illustrates how to tag another caregiver in a message. The coaching tool can be automatically displayed when a caregiver enters a chat room for the first time. The coaching tool can provide a short overview of what tagging is and the consequences of not tagging another caregiver when sending a messaging in the chat room. In certain examples, the coaching tool is only displayed the first time the caregiver enters a chat room, and will not be shown on subsequent visits or the first time the caregiver visits other chat rooms. The coaching tool can be helpful for caregivers who are new to the mobile caregiver applicationand are unfamiliar with how to tag another caregiver in a message for sending to the chat room.

12 FIG. 1200 1200 916 200 916 1200 shows an example of an alertthat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to tag another caregiver who is not assigned to the chat room. The alertcan be displayed after the caregiver selects the send symbolto send a message that tags the other caregiver. Alternatively, the alert can be displayed after the other caregiver is recognized by the mobile caregiver application, and before the send symbolis selected to send the message. The alertis displayed over the message area of the chat room.

12 FIG. 1200 1202 906 1200 1204 As shown in, the alertcan include a cancel inputthat is selectable to cancel the message and return back to typing the message in the input areaof the chat room. Also, the alertincludes an add user inputthat can be selected by the caregiver to add the caregiver who is not assigned to the chat room. In some examples, only caregivers who have appropriate credentials are allowed to be added to the chat room. In the example of a patient-centric chat room, only caregivers who have patient viewing privileges (PVP) can be selected to be added to the patient-centric chat room. This can ensure that only qualified caregivers are included in the chat room, and also protect patient privacy.

13 FIG. 13 FIG. 1300 1300 1300 1300 1302 906 shows an example of an alertthat is generated when a tagged caregiver does not have the appropriate credentials to be added to the chat room. As shown in, the alertcan include a message such as “Unable to Invite”. The alertmay also include additional details such as “[display name] could not be added to the chat room. Please try again.” The alertincludes a cancel inputthat is selectable to cancel the message and return back to typing the message in the input areaof the chat room.

14 FIG. 1400 1402 1402 208 1400 1400 1402 1402 shows an example of a tag overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to tag another caregiver inside the text entry field. Once the at symbol @ is entered into the text entry field, the software moduledisplays inside the tag overlaya list of caregivers that are assigned to the chat room for selection by the caregiver. In certain examples, the list of caregivers is dynamically updated and/or filtered to match the letters that are typed after the at symbol @. Selecting one of the suggested caregivers listed in the tag overlaywill auto-complete the selected caregiver's name in the text entry field, and the caregiver can thereafter continue to type the message inside the text entry field.

1400 1402 1400 1402 1400 1402 1400 1400 1400 In some examples, when a caregiver attempts to add text or an image to a message, the tag overlayand/or text entry fieldare automatically adjusted to ensure that the tag overlayremains viewable while the caregiver types their message. To ensure that the caregiver is able to view both the text entry fieldand the tag overlaysimultaneously, a preview of the image that is added to the message is resized, and/or the text entry fieldand the tag overlayare resized. Additionally, the caregivers listed in the tag overlaycan be truncated for space. For example, the role of each caregiver can be truncated by using an ellipsis (e.g., “ . . . ”). If space is still needed, the names of the caregivers can also be truncated, and the role of each caregiver is removed entirely. Also, the number of caregivers that are listed in the tag overlaycan be adjusted to create additional spaced.

14 FIG. 1400 1400 In the example shown in, only caregivers that are assigned to the chat room and that are on shift are displayed in the tag overlay. The list of caregivers displayed in the tag overlayis dynamically updated and will immediately display changes when taggable caregivers are added or removed from the chat room.

1402 Also, in addition to tagging another caregiver, an entire team or group of caregivers assigned to the patient can be tagged in a message that is typed in the text entry field. Also, in some examples, a caregiver can tag every member of the chat room by typing @all.

15 FIG. 15 FIG. 1500 1502 1500 1500 1504 1500 shows another example of a tag overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to tag in a text entry fieldanother caregiver that is not a member of the chat room. Referring now to, the tag overlaycan include a message such as “This user is not in this chat room.” Additionally, the tag overlaycan prompt the caregiver to use the search optionto add the other caregiver to the chat room. For example, the tag overlaycan display a message such as “Tap the search button to add the user.”

16 FIG. 15 FIG. 16 FIG. 1600 1504 1500 1600 shows an example of a search overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to add another caregiver that is not assigned to the chat room by selecting the search optionshown in the tag overlayof. Referring now to, once the search overlayis opened, the caregiver can search for one or more caregivers to add to the chat room by name, role, unit, or team. Thereafter, the caregiver can select from the search results a caregiver to add to the chat room. As discussed above, only caregivers with credentials such as patient viewing privileges (PVP) can be added to a patient-centric chat room.

17 FIG. 17 FIG. 1700 1702 1704 1702 1704 1706 1708 1700 shows an example of a search overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to add another caregiver to the chat room. In, when the caregiver types “Cardiologist” the search results can include an unnamed cardiologist identified by their status such as Cardiologist Attending, and as well as named cardiologistssuch as “Cardiologist—Lori Larson” and “Cardiologist—Melissa Brown”. The caregiver can select the Cardiologist Attendingor the named cardiologistsfrom the search results to add that caregiver to the chat room, or can select clear inputto clear the search and start over, or select exit inputto leave the search overlayand return to typing their message.

18 FIG. 18 FIG. 17 FIG. 18 FIG. 1800 shows another example of a search overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to search for a specific caregiver to add to the chat room. In the example provided in, in response to the caregiver typing “Lori Larson”, the search overlay identifies “Lori Larson—Cardiologist” as matching the search criteria. Thus, the search results provided in the search overlay depend on the specificity of the search criteria. For example, more search results are provided for broad search criteria (e.g., “Cardiologist” of), and fewer search results are provided for specific search criteria (e.g., “Lori Larson” of).

1700 916 1300 13 FIG. When the desired caregiver is selected from the list displayed in the search overlay, the name of the selected caregiver is displayed as a tag in the message draft. Once the caregiver selects to send the message (i.e., by selecting the send symbol) a confirmation can be displayed to confirm that the new caregiver has been added to the chat room. If the tagged caregiver is offline or they no longer have PVP, then an error message (see the alertof) can be displayed after the caregiver attempts to send the message.

In certain examples, a caregiver can save a draft message before deciding to send the message to the chat room. In examples where the saved draft message tags another caregiver, the tag in the draft message persists when the saved draft message is opened at a later time. In some examples, when a saved draft message contains a tagged caregiver that has been removed from the chat room, the tag in the saved draft message will not persist and the “@username” can be reverted to plain text. In other examples, when a saved draft message tags another caregiver, the tag will persist even if the tagged caregiver is no longer a member of the chat room, and the tagged caregiver will be invited back into the chat room when the draft message is sent.

21 FIG. 21 FIG. 2100 2100 302 When a tagged caregiver is online and has the appropriate credentials to be added to the chat room, the tagged caregiver will receive a notification that they have been added to the chat room and a join in-line message will be shown in the chat room history to all participants., shows an example of a notificationthat is sent to the invited caregiver. In the example provided in, the notificationcan include the name of the chat room such as a patient room (e.g., “chat room”) in the case of a patient-centric chat room.

22 FIG. 2200 When the other caregiver is invited to the chat room, the other caregiver can decide to leave the chat room. In this regard,shows a leave chat room optionfor a caregiver that has been invited to a chat room from another caregiver, but is not assigned to the patient or the patient's room in the case of patient-centric chat rooms, or is not a member of the department, unit, or team in the case of shift-centric chat rooms. Thus, the invited caregiver can leave a chat room without requesting permission to do so from the other caregivers.

Additionally, in some examples, the chat rooms will respect each caregiver's notification preferences. For example, caregivers invited to a chat room can select notification levels for that chat room such as: (1) a mute notification level where no notification or sound for a new message is generated; (2) a tags only notification level where notification and sound are played only for new messages where the invited caregiver is tagged or a group tag (@all) is sent; or (3) an all new messages notification level where notifications are displayed and sounds are played for all new messages received in the chat room except for in-line join/leave messages.

Depending on the notification level for each chatroom, the following events can occur when a new message is received in a chat room: Unread message count on the chat room and chat history tab can iterate. Caregiver can receive an OS notification with or without sound.

800 52 When a caregiver leaves a chat room or is removed from the chat room because they are no longer assigned to the patient, or when the chat room is terminated because the patient has been discharged, a banner or message is displayed in the chat room to indicate that the caregiver is no longer a member of the chat room, or that the chat room has been terminated. At this time, the caregiver cannot interact with the chat room anymore and the chat room will be removed from the chat rooms tabdisplayed on the mobile deviceof the caregiver. Also, any open notifications/reminders from the chat room are canceled. If a caregiver enters a chat room from a push notification that is generated for a message sent in the chat room, a similar message that indicates that the caregiver is no longer a member of the chat room, or that the patient has been discharged can be displayed and the user is prevented from interacting with the chat room.

19 FIG. 19 FIG. 1900 shows another example of a search overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to add a unit of caregivers to the chat room. In the example provided in, in response to the caregiver typing “Unit”, the search overlay generates a list of healthcare facility units such as a “Medical Intensive Care Unit—MICU”, “Neonatal Intensive Care Unit—NICU”, “Observation Unit”, and “Pediatric Intensive Care Unit—PICU”. The units in a healthcare facility may vary from facility to facility such that these search results are provided as illustrative examples that are not meant to be fully enumerated in any way.

20 FIG. 2000 20 shows another example of a search overlaythat is displayed when a caregiver attempts to add a team of caregivers to the chat room. In the example provided in FIG., in response to the caregiver typing “Team”, the search overlay generates a list of healthcare facility teams such as a “Anesthesia Team”, “Carmel Charge Nurse Team”, “Code Blue Team”, and “Neonatal Code Blue Team”. The teams of caregivers in a healthcare facility may vary from facility to facility such that these search results are provided as illustrative examples only.

24 FIG. 2400 FIG. 2400 52 2400 2400 800 2400 2402 2400 2404 2402 2404 2404 2402 shows an example of a user interfacethat can be displayed on a display screen of a mobile deviceof a caregiver. The user interfaceis a shift-centric chat room for a clinic within the healthcare facility (e.g., “Cardiology Clinic”). The user interfacecan be displayed in response to a selection of a chat room from the chat rooms tab. As shown in, the user interfacedisplays a list of the caregiversthat are assigned to the chat room. The user interfacecan further display a unit chat room. In certain examples, a caregiver can select a particular caregiverto message them directly instead of sending a message to the unit chat room. Alternatively, a caregiver can select the unit chat roomto message the entire unit. The role of each caregivercan be provided such as “ICU Nurse Practitioner”, “Intensivist”, “Nurse”, “Respiratory Therapist”, and the like.

25 FIG. 8 FIG. 9 FIG. 25 FIG. 2500 52 2500 2500 802 2500 934 900 2500 2502 2500 2504 2502 2504 b shows another example of a user interfacethat can be displayed on a display screen of a mobile deviceof a caregiver. The user interfaceis a shift-centric chat room for a team within the healthcare facility (e.g., “Code Blue Team”). For example, the user interfacecan be displayed in response to a selection of the chat roomshown in. Alternatively, the user interfacecan be displayed in response to a caregiver selecting the team tabshown in the chat roomof. As shown in, the user interfacedisplays a list of the caregiversthat are assigned to the chat room. The user interfacecan further display a team chat room. In certain examples, a caregiver can select a particular caregiverto message them directly instead of sending a message to the chat room. Alternatively, a caregiver can select the team chat roomto message the entire team.

26 FIG. 26 FIG. 52 52 200 52 2602 2608 2620 2608 2602 2602 2608 2610 2612 52 2612 52 schematically illustrates one of the mobile deviceswhich can be used to implement aspects of the present disclosure, such as the functions of the mobile devicesequipped with the mobile caregiver application. The mobile deviceincludes a processing unit, a system memory, and a system busthat couples the system memoryto the processing unit. The processing unitis an example of a processing device such as a central processing unit (CPU). The system memoryincludes a random-access memory (“RAM”)and a read-only memory (“ROM”). A basic input/output logic containing the basic routines that help to transfer information between elements within the mobile device, such as during startup, is stored in the ROM. Although one of the mobile devicesis depicted in, the other computing devices disclosed herein can have similar components.

52 2614 2614 2602 2620 2614 52 The mobile devicecan also include a mass storage devicethat is able to store software instructions and data. The mass storage deviceis connected to the processing unitthrough a mass storage controller (not shown) connected to the system bus. The mass storage deviceand its associated computer-readable data storage media provide non-volatile, non-transitory storage for the mobile device.

2614 Although the description of computer-readable data storage media contained herein refers to a mass storage device, it should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that computer-readable data storage media can be any available non-transitory, physical device or article of manufacture from which the device can read data and/or instructions. In certain embodiments, the computer-readable storage media comprises entirely non-transitory media. The mass storage deviceis an example of a computer-readable storage device.

Computer-readable data storage media include volatile and non-volatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer-readable software instructions, data structures, program modules or other data. Example types of computer-readable data storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other solid-state memory technology, or any other medium which can be used to store information, and which can be accessed by the device.

52 114 110 52 110 2604 2620 2604 The mobile devicemay operate in a networked environment using logical connections to remote network devices, including the server, through the network, such as a local network, the Internet, or another type of network. The mobile deviceconnects to the networkthrough a network interface unitconnected to the system bus. The network interface unitmay also be utilized to connect to other types of networks and remote computing systems.

52 2606 2606 The mobile devicecan also include an input/output controllerfor receiving and processing input from a number of input devices. Similarly, the input/output controllermay provide output to a number of output devices.

2614 2610 2618 2614 2610 2616 2602 The mass storage deviceand the RAMcan store software instructions and data. The software instructions can include an operating systemsuitable for controlling the operation of the device. The mass storage deviceand/or the RAMalso store software instructions, that when executed by the processing unit, cause the device to provide the functionality of the device discussed in this document.

The various embodiments described above are provided by way of illustration only and should not be construed to be limiting in any way. Various modifications can be made to the embodiments described above without departing from the true spirit and scope of the disclosure.